Facebook: Most Popular Search Term & Most Visited Website in 2010, Hitwise Says

Facebook passed Google as the most-visited website in the US in 2010, according to a new end-of-year report from Experian Hitwise. And not only that, but Facebook was also the most searched-for keyword of the year, too, just as it was a year ago. In fact, Hitwise says four of the top ten most popular search terms in 2010 involved people searching for Facebook.

According to Hitwise, Facebook accounted for 8.93% of all US website visits between January and the end of November, 2010. Google, which was the most-visited site in 2009, dropped to second this year with 7.19% of all visits. But, if you account for visits to YouTube (owned by Google), then Google properties had more visits than Facebook.

Three Yahoo sites placed in the top ten and together they accounted for 8.12% of all US website visits. Bing cracked the top ten for the first time, while MSN.com jumped from ninth in 2009 to sixth this year.

Facebook also dominated search activity, with four of the ten most popular search terms: Facebook, Facebook login, facebook.com, and www.facebook.com. The word “facebook” accounted for 2.11% of all US searches, Hitwise says, and the four terms combined to account for 3.48% of search activity. That’s a 207% increase for those terms compared to 2009.

Experian Hitwise says terms related to social networking accounted for 4.18% of the top 50 searches. Their full release has additional information about popular search terms in categories such as movies, personailities, sports, and more.

About The Author

Matt McGee is the Editor-In-Chief of Search Engine Land. His news career includes time spent in TV, radio, and print journalism. After leaving traditional media in the mid-1990s, he began developing and marketing websites and continued to provide consulting services for more than 15 years. His SEO and social media clients ranged from mom-and-pop small businesses to one of the Top 5 online retailers. Matt is a longtime speaker at marketing events around the U.S., including keynote and panelist roles. He can be found on Twitter at @MattMcGee and/or on Google Plus. You can read Matt's disclosures on his personal blog. You can reach Matt via email using our Contact page.

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